Author: jakemaedke

Gran Fondo Ephrata has never been an easy event. Ask around and you will hear fables of frigid rain, sideways snow, and leg cramps on Three Devils.  This year however we are facing a new challenge.  One that we cannot simply dig deep and keep pedaling through.  After much deliberation we have come to the conclusion that we will err on the side of safety for our cycling community, our volunteers, and our little town of Ephrata and postpone this event.  This has not been an easy decision to come to and we appreciate your patience through the process.  You will be receiving a coupon good for the Gran Fondo Ephrata Fall Classic on Oct 4.  Should that not work for you, the coupon is good for any 2020 Vicious Cycle Event.  We are truly humbled by the outpouring of support we get at these events and want to thank you for riding with us.  Please be safe out there, see you down the road.

We are two weeks out from Gran Fondo Ephrata and things are looking good!  A few of us got out for some GFE stoke this weekend and found that all roads are clear and rolling fast.  In fact Baird is probably the best it’s ever been.  AND the weather forecast looks great for the foreseeable future.  Sounds like this is a home run, what could go wrong?  Well, we’re two weeks out, lots can go wrong.  The medio course has already seen some county road grading, and new “gravel” patches on Overen.  It’s still mostly awesome, but there are a few chunky spots.  I guess what we’re saying here is there’s a ton of variables on these rides, that’s part of what makes them cool.  Overall, it is shaping up to be very good, but come prepared, and ready for whatever gets thrown your way, because just when you think you’ve got it figured out, you don’t!

2019 was an epic ride.  Starting out with a late winter blast that left the GFE course buried, and unrecognizable.  Continue reading “Best of 2019” →

Sooo much good dirt on the Beez in Nov, gotta get it while you can, winter is a coming!  Speaking of winter, the Rapha Festive 500 is coming up, always a good time, and a little extra boost for your 2020 season.  You know, the year you’re finally going to nail the 5 pac and earn the “Slayer” status.

Ok, here it is in all of its splendor, the much anticipated Vicious Cycle Events 2020 schedule!  Look for registration to open Feb 1st.  We are predicting a mild winter with a nice warm spring (betcha didn’t know we could do that) filled with fast rolling gravel.  While we’re predicting, we also see a new bike in your future with you once again narrowly avoiding divorce.  Nicely done.

March 15 Gran Fondo Ephrata 10th Anniversary Edition

April 4 Beezley Burn MTB

April 26 Gran Fondo Goldendale

May 17 Gran Fondo Leavenworth

June 14 Gran Fondo Ellensburg

Sept 19 Gran Fondo Winthrop

-By Brig Seidl

I don’t know why I used to think of Ellensburg as the “easy” Vicious Cycle Gran Fondo. Maybe because the extensive asphalt segments or because it lacks a knockout punch straight out of the gate like the others I just never seemed to take Ellensburg seriously for some reason. You know, just show up, kick some Egencia ass and then move on to the next real race. Continue reading “The Tom Dumoulin of VC Fondos” →

Lets begin this with the course is clear of snow, and to the best of our knowledge there is no crazy weather coming.  In fact the weather looks to be downright pleasant at the moment, partly cloudy and 77 degrees.  The course is rolling well with nothing noteworthy to report, roads seemed to be in good shape, views epic, as always.  The only real thing to note is Mohar rd is finally open again so we will utilize it as in the past.  It is the road just past aid 3 for Grande, or main aid for Medio.  It’s the road that keeps us from back tracking on Westside road to Cle Elum and cuts off a couple mile.  It has an immediate sharp kicker that is now chunky gravel.  What’s not to love!?  There are still spots available, so if you have any teammates not signed up, or anyone else you would really like to see suffer, send them this way!  Registration closes Thursday night at midnight.  See you there!

-By Brig Seidl

Ahh good ole Gran Fondo Leavenworth. Once the sharpest rapier in Vicious Cycle’s scabbard it has been dulled somewhat in recent years by the exclusion of the Mud Creek and Navarre Coulee sections but it is still pointy enough to draw blood and extract sweat. Or drown you like a bilge rat as appeared to be the case this year when I was confronted with an absolute dark, dank, downpour upon cresting Blewett Pass at 6:15 a.m. en route to the Peshastin Elementary School start line. Continue reading “GFL With Brig” →

You already know what we’re going to say right, come ready for adventure.  So here’s a few things that could potentially make Gran Fondo Leavenworth even more adventurous than it already is.  Snow.  Big surprise, but there’s still patches of snow atop the first climb.  There may or may not be a short hike-a-bike similar to a few years ago, should be fairly minimal with that run of warm weather we just had.  Rain.  Forecast is calling for chances of rain on and off all week.  Some rain would be nice, as things are already super dry.  A lot of rain turns Swakane into a gumbo mess, to which we reroute.  Parking.  The Peshastin/Dryden Elementary School where we stage out of is under construction, and we only have about half the parking we usually have.  Please see parking map for additional parking options.  Otherwise everything is awesome, and shaping up to be epic!